There are certain areas of the world that were made for specific things. The area of Muscle Shoals, Alabama, is home to FAME studios, an institution founded by Rick Hall. This studio is responsible for acts like Etta James, Percy Sledge, and the Allman Brothers. Located in an area of the Tennessee River that the Native Americans would call "the singing river", the scenery and the calmness of the country make for a specific sound in the studio.
Unfortunately, this movie was way too long for the subject matter it tackled. Around the hour and ten-minute mark, it started to feel like more of the same. The music made in Muscle Shoals is not always one of accuracy, but more about soul"”and it's not necessarily the same soul I can take for longer than an hour. I prefer my music to have both heart and discipline, which I sometimes think is lacking from acts like the Grateful Dead or Alicia Keys. Shots of sweeping plains and winding rivers are beautiful, but at a certain point, the audience needs more than just a pretty piece of scenery to stay awake. I would recommend it for the hardcore southern rock music lover, but skip it if Lynyrd Skynyrd makes you sad.
